ANSEL ADAMS IN THE GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS

Photographer and American legend Ansel Adams once said, "There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs." In the case of his work from the corner of the Appalachians in Tennessee known as the Great Smokies, he may have been his own strict critic because only four photos were ever published. The Knoxville Museum of Art is exhibiting a handful of these rare images along with several other of Adams' photos on loan from the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts.

In 1948 Adams photographed the Great Smoky Mountains National Park just a decade into its existence as part of a Guggenheim Fellowship. He captured the quiet majesty of the forest that drapes over the foothills as well as the split rail fences and gravel roads that led up into the hills. He arrived in the fall, and the varied colors of the mountain maple, oak, and birch trees come through even in his famous black and white photographs.

Sight and Feeling is open now and runs through May 4th. More information available at the Knoxville Museum of Art's website.

To see the full collection of Adams' Tennessee images (not all of which will are being exhibited) click here.

The Southern Glossary Instagram is at the heart of our project. Each week, a new artist shares work from somewhere in the South and communicates how it affects and inspires them. Check out the latest images from the feed and be sure to follow us.